Gov. Terry Branstad’s income dropped $132K last year

Gov. Terry Branstad’s income dropped $132,004 last year, due largely from ending his employment as president of Des Moines University and severing his role on several corporate boards.

In total, the governor’s adjusted gross income after credits and deductions last year was $190,472, which included $52,954 from the Iowa Public Employees Retirement System Pension income from his previous years in government work, according to his 2011 tax return that he allowed media to briefly view this afternoon.

The Iowa governor’s base salary is $130,000, about 64 percent lower than the $360,000 he was paid at Des Moines University. His salary as governor in 2011 was $116,131 since he officially took office in January.

His taxable income was about $103,600 and he paid roughly $18,000 in taxes. He and his wife Chris additionally donated $25,458 to charity. The charity donations are not required to be listed on the return but his staff said the major ones include Living History Farms, the Boone County Hospital Foundation, Des Moines University and a variety of Catholic charities. His non-cash donations included donations to Goodwill valued at $949.

Branstad had previously worked on several boards but stepped down from those paid positions when taking office. In his 2010 return he listed nearly $24,100 in income from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants; ConMed, which provides health care services to prison inmates; and Liberty Bank. As promised during campaigning, he has resigned from those positions. That income is not in this year’s return since he stepped down from those jobs.

A governor is not required to release his income tax records, although Branstad has made a point to do so while holding public office.

“I think his motivation is just to be extremely transparent as far as where his income is,” said Jeff Boeyink, Branstad’s chief of staff. “ He’s always been pretty open with people and is an extremely accessible governor. I think this is just kind of an outgrowth of his desire to be an open book to Iowans.”

Branstad paid $52 in state income tax but that, his staff noted, is anomaly. Branstad paid $62,831 in federal income taxes in 2010 and that amount is deductible on his 2011 state tax return. Since his 2011 income is much lower, the deduction substantially reduced his state tax liability, they said.

Additionally, Branstad contributed $11,400 last year to college saving plans for his four granddaughters and claimed $41,585 in losses from his investments in Liberty Banshares, Iowa, Inc., an Iowa holding company for Liberty Bank that has lost money in recent years.

Branstad additionally is owner or part-owner of a dozen post offices across the state. Those investments reported an income of $39,725, the tax return shows.

Despite the dip as compared to previous years, Branstad’s income is still far above the average Iowan’s. Based on the 2010 Iowa Wage Survey from Iowa Workforce Development, the average Iowa salary is $37,529. A preliminary estimate for 2011 is $39,198.

Boeyink acknowledged that the governor’s income could — and has in previous years — be the subject of scrutiny from his critics.

“You always have to consider that when you make yourself available to this kind of scrutiny,” Boeyink said. “On the other hand, the governor is proud of the income that he’s made. I certainly think he’s earned it. I don’t know of any harder working governor in the county so I don’t begrudge him one dollar that he makes.”